The present invention relates to a safety for firearms and more particularly, an ambidextrous safety for pistols.
A safety is a mechanism that can prevent accidental discharge of a firearm. External safeties, such as thumb safeties, permit a user to manually move a lever between a safe position (i.e., on-safe) and a firing position (i.e., off-safe). Typically, such levers are provided on the left side of the firearm such that they provide ready use by a user's right-hand thumb during right-handed use or gripping of the firearm.
To enable left-handed use of a firearm having a safety, an ambidextrous safety can be installed that provides levers on both sides of the firearm. Accordingly, an ambidextrous safety enables right-handed and left-handed use of the firearm and may provide levers for use by either a left or right hand thumb of the user.
Ambidextrous safeties are typically made in two parts that are located on opposite sides of the firearm and are fastened together such that rotation of one about an axis extending lengthwise through a pivot pin of the safety also rotates the other about the same axis. A problem with ambidextrous safeties is that “backlash” or looseness of the two parts can occur. For instance, over time and repeated use, the mechanism used to interconnect the right and left safety levers may be subject to drag which requires additional force to be applied by the user to operate the safety. This tends to cause the right and left side safety elements to become loosened or misaligned thereby preventing the safety from operating in an intended smooth manner or may produce excessive play causing the right-handed safety to walk out or become separated thereby preventing operation of the safety altogether.